Propulsion means for vessels



Jan. 116, 1945. M E 'BAKER 4 2,367,325

PROPULSION MEANS FOR VESSELS Jan. 16

r vM. E. BAKER PROPULSION MEANS FOR lVESSELS med oct. 25, 194s 2 sheets-sheet 2 high ,speed high` powered engine with Patented Jan. 16, 1945 y 1 UNITED STATES PATENT( .()FFICE` i j j 2,367,325L I Y PRoPULsIoN FoR'vEssELs Melyn E. Baker, Oregon City, Oreg. Y y Application october 25, 194s, serial '1510.502523 I' sclaims. (C1. 11s-16) I This invention relates to propulsion meansvfor vessels, especially for shallow draft vessels used as landing Craft, or, for forcing a way up shallow shaggy bo-ttomed and generally unnavigable waterways, with a conventional vessel.

The principal object is to furnish means for applying'a large amount of power and resulting speed to a hull, especially in shallow water, without the vhandicapo'f 'pulling the water out from under 'the hull as will invariably be done with a conventional screw propeller located at the stern of thehull. V l

A further object is to utilize an improved form of jetpropulsion combined withf reaction force of screw propeller means, in forward motion.

Another object is to utilizea plurality of rela-L tively small diameter `propellers and ,soy arrange them that they can all get water against which to act, when the depth ofthe stream or body of water would otherwise be insufficient 'to get enough water to absorb the power yof a modern single or twin conventional propellers. y

A still further objectisto/place alljpropellers within the body of the lliull of avesselout of the way of snags and other obstructions that mightl otherwise foul the propellers.y

, Other objects will be at once apparent to those familiar with vessels of the character referred to, especially where fuel economy issecondary to performance, from the following disclosure and are more particularly pointed out in the claims'hereto appended. l Drawings, in which diagramming to illustrate the invention and the principle thereof takes precedence over relative proportions, accompany and form a part hereof and are described hereinafter in detail.

In the drawings: y

Fig. 1 is a side view of a relatively flat-bot 4tomed keelless hull showing va cabin and rudder;

Fig. 2 is a section taken on the line 2,-52 of Fig. 1; Y

Fig. 3 is a cross-section of'Fig. 2 talz'enon` the `approximate midship line of the hull, indicated by the line 3-'-3 of Fig. 2; and

, any approved form and-has built therein two 1ongitudinal waterways 2 on each side, preferably line when the hull is oating level, light, and are open through the outside of thev liullI as shown. Grids, not shown, will ordinarily be'used to cover these outlets indicated by numerals I as they are all about the same. No flaring either way is indicated'. y

f The wallv 5 'is fitted withfplural xed shroud thimbles 8 within which are'mountedscrew propellers 9. This indication means that ythere will' alwaysv be a plurality'of propellers on each'side but the numberV is not limited 'to two but to the number required-to absorb theavailable power` provided ythel waterways 2 will furnish the water.` Thev propellers lilwill take waterfrom the waterwaysf2 and deliver it to waterways I 0 at a velocity as good as obtainable. 'y Waterways I0 are boundedin part by the skin of ythe hulL'preferably at the ,turn of the bilge portion as shown, and except for the shroud thimbles 8 have' Ilo communication with the waterways 2, but like the waterways 2, both ends of the waterways IIJ are in'communication with the uwater in `which the Qhull I lloats, save that parallel to the longitudinal axis of the hull as f` shown and as long as the curved run of the hull will conveniently permit. These waterways are bounded by watertight construction such as the gate valves' I2 va'refmounted to control the outlet ports of waterways IU, which are`indicated by numeral I4 in all four locations. See Fig. 2.

vflh'ese outletsA I4 should" not be materially nozzled down and should-be a'sshoWn,y so formed andv arranged that the stream delivered through K .them is directed angularly for-ward or aft, depending on theposition of lthe gate Valves I2 and as near toa line tangent t0 the curve of the hull I as the design of vthe latter will permit. Hydraulic means are lshown `for moving the valves i2 but that is a diagrammatic representation only and is specii'icallydis'claimed as being any part of the invention.

` f The .purposes of arranging the delivery angularly-,downward are' dual. 'It `wil-l give a slight lifting moment to the'hull but more important, it tends to prevent loss of power andfconsequent effectiveness by the delivered stream of water from Vthe propellers breaking upward towards'the surface of the water. When both forward ports I4v are open and the aftpropellers 3i), yet to be described, are not operating, the direction of motion of the hull will be aft; or'in other words the effect is the same as a, reverse gear on a conventional propeller.v

When one port vI4 forward is open and the opposite port I4 aft is also open, a strong turning moment, or couple of forces will swing the vessel abruptly around, though this maneuver is intended more for emergency use than as a substitute for steering the hull by a rudder.

Gear cases I and Il and clutch I9 with the drive shafts I8 and a main drive shaft IB diagrammatically indicate means for transmitting power from the motor 2U in appropriate direction to the propellers 9.

An athwartship bulkhead 21 aft of the motor 20 is provided with shroud rings 28, and propellers 30 are revolubly mounted therein. These propellers 30 are provided with a gear case 3l, thrust bearings 32 and appropriate shafting and other connections not numbered to avoid crowding the drawings, by which they receive power from the motor 20.

It is to be noted here that the propellers 30 receive outside water through ports 34 and 35 and deliver it through the stern-port 36, which again will not be nozzled, but like the port and starboard efflux ports will be so proportioned that the velocity of water delivery through any port is a function of the designed maximum speed of the hull, with as little ,turbulence as possible.

It Will be seen that by using multiple propellers of small size I am able to utilize the powerof a high powered modern motor in relatively shallow water and while the power hook-up is admitted not to be particularly economical of fuel, it will produce a performance that in many cases is far more important. A screw propeller is not like a centrifugal pump with respect to losing its priming and obviously if one intake por-t is heaved out of water entirely it Will function immediately it becomes submerged again and the motor may speed up but will not race as it will be relatively impossible for all ports to emerge and deprive all of the propellers of water concurrently. In addition to the general principle, I consider placing the delivery jets so that they deliver angularly downward as well as contra to the intended line of travel to be of major importance.

Having disclosed my invention so that a competent marine architect can design a hull and power plant that will make effective use of it, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

l. Propulsion means for a floating hull comprising adjacent pairs of longitudinal waterways within said hull substantially parallel to its axis, both waterways of a pair being open to outside water at both ends, a plurality of propellers posihull, an outlet channel in substantial parallelism therewith further from said axis, a wall therebetween containing propeller shrouds, waterways therebetween, a plurality of propellers mounted for revolutionin said shrouds to draw from the inlet and force toward the outlet channel, said outlet channel provided with outlet ports ar ranged to deliver water angularly forward and aft respectively from the opposite ends thereof, valve means for selectively directing the whole of the water from the propellers to either of the outlet ports, all of this structure being placed on the starboard side and above the keel of the hull and-there being a duplicate structure on the port side of the hull.

3. In propulsion means for a floating hull of the bilge type, a pair of longitudinal inlet waterways low in the hull and parallel with the keel, there being one on each side of the keelson space, each waterway open at both ends and of equal capacity, a pair of outlet waterways each of which is substantially parallel with and outside of its companion inlet waterway, each being provided with a substantially unreduced outlet opening at each end, valve means for selectively opening one outlet and closing the other and a plurality of operative propellers positioned and powered to independently draw water from an inlet waterway and drive it through an outlet waterway to one of the outlet openings, said outlet being located in part below the turn of the bilge.

4. Propulsion means for a floating hull comprising in part, motor means mounted within the means for selectively limiting water delivery to one delivery port at. a time and power means for driving the propellers.

2. Propulsion means for a floating hull com-l hull, two pairs of longitudinal inner waterways fore and aft, 4each being open at both ends and unreducedfrom end to end, there being an equal pair on each side of the axis of the hull, a plurality of athwartship propeller shafts mounted for revolution and operatively connected to said motor means, oppositely pitched propellers on the respective ends f said shafts, said propellers being entirely within `the outline of the hull and positioned to draw water from an inner waterway of a pair and deliver `it to an outer member of such pair, said open ends of said outer waterways being positioned to discharge angularly for- Ward and angularly aft .selectively and valve means for selectively determining the open ends to be inservice. I

5. In propulsion means for a vessel, longitudinal pairs of side by side built-in waterways within the hull of the vessel, there being a pair on port and on starboard side of the hull, each Waterway being of full size throughout its length and provided with a full sized opening at both ends, said openings being low down and beneath the designed load waterline of the hull, a motor, a plurality of pairs of oppositely placed revolubly mounted propellers connected to the motor, each propeller being arranged to independently draw water from the inner waterway of a pair and discharge it into the outer one of the same pair and means for selectively closing one outlet of an outer waterway to direct the discharge of the propellers associated therewith out of the other outlet.

MELYN E. BAKER. 

